


Daminette December 2019

by usmfan2759



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DC Comics, Miraculous Ladybug, Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2019-12-03
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:01:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21653416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/usmfan2759/pseuds/usmfan2759
Summary: A collection of works for the month of December dedicated solely to Daminette.
Relationships: Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Damian Wayne, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Damian Wayne
Comments: 3
Kudos: 118





	1. Day 1: Just A Friend

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time contributing to the Daminette ship so please bear with me. Also, I apologize in advance because some of these entries are bound to be late. I hope you enjoy!

“Come on, Damian. Why is it so hard for you to just say that you like her?” asked Dick, as he followed Damian down to the Bat Cave.

“Grayson, I do like her. I wouldn’t be friends with Dupain-Cheng if I didn’t,” Damian said, as he continued to avoid Dick’s grasp.

“That’s not what I meant, baby bird. Why can’t you just admit it?” he probed.

Damian rushed down the stairs and towards the Bat-Computer where his father was working. Neither one said a thing but Damian was quick to help his father to avoid Dick bringing up Marinette Dupain-Cheng. By the time Dick got over to Bruce, Damian was already walking away with Tim’s folders and Jason’s weapons while Dick stopped to talk to Bruce.

“Dick, what is it exactly you were trying to get Damian to admit?” Bruce asked as he took another sip of his coffee.

“You remember Marinette Dupain-Cheng, right?” Dick asked.

“Zatanna’s kid cousin?” Bruce looked up at Dick who nodded. “What about her? Last time I heard of her, she was chewing out Superman and the rest of the Justice League for not listening to her about Hawkmoth.”

“Well, she and Damian have been spending a lot of time lately so I asked him when he was going to ask her out and you know what he told me?” Dick stood up a little straighter and threw his arms up. “‘She’s just a friend, Grayson. Nothing more, nothing less’!”

Bruce stopped what he was doing and looked up at Dick, who was now minutely aware that everyone was staring at him. Except for Damian, who was glaring daggers at him while he sharpened his weapons. Bruce was opening his mouth to say something when Jason dropped his stuff and started laughing. Tim, who was walking over to the computer simply snickered as he hid behind his cup of coffee. Cass and Duke give each other a glance and they silently agree to make their way towards their youngest brother.

“Please, you’re grasping at straws, Dick. There’s no way that our little ‘Ice Prince’ has fallen in love,” said Jason, once he finally caught his breath. “Right, Damian?”

Dick pouted at his siblings as they rolled their eyes at him in disbelief. They waited for Damian to respond but he wouldn't say a thing. The boys turned to look at him with Cass and Duke standing not too far away from Damian. The boy was intent on stroking his cat without making eye contact with anyone and trying to make himself smaller.

"What's on your mind?" asked Duke, as he sits down beside Damian.

"It took me a couple of years to learn what being a good friend is like," Damian stated, as he looked up at Duke before turning to Dick, "I'm in no position to ruin the first friendship that I've made on my own because I might or might not have feelings for someone that cared for me during a time that no one did."

"Speaking of friends... shouldn't you be getting ready for school? After your patrol tonight ended up in the sewers, I think that you need a nice long shower so you don't assault them with your stench, Master Damian," said Alfred, as he approached the group.

"If you go take that shower now, then you'll have an hour to yourself after you eat. More than enough time to use the Zeta Tubes to go back to Paris before your host family notices your absence.

With that said, Damian shot up from his seat and rushed up the stairs.  
\--  
When Lila got to school in the morning, she was annoyed to see that Damian was practically glued to her side. Lila had seen how close the two of them were. Marinette called him all sorts of pet names and would whisk Damian away to parks and landmarks to inspire the pair when either one was having artist block. Even Damian, who was cold and closed off to most, was warm and friendly to Marinette. He had even gone so far as to hug her and bring her gifts on occasions.

At first, she had been excited to see her cousin and show him her progress on the situation in Paris but as she was never considered a true heir to the al Ghul lineage... they were seemingly destined to butt heads. After Damian had threatened her at the very beginning, she made sure to stay clear of her estranged cousin. To Lila's credit, she had headed his warning. But as she walked into the cafeteria, she was pleased to see that Marinette was sitting with her friends without Damian standing guard.

“So Marinette…” drawled Lila, as she walked over to Marinette and her friends' attention. “How long have you and Damian been dating?”

Marinette’s eyes widened in shock as everyone turned towards her with bated breaths. If it confused her friends, who for the most part believed that she was in love with Adrien, then they didn't show it. However, they kept looking between Marinette and Lila. Lila was thrilled as she was thinking to herself that she's trapped Marinette.

Marinette, on the other hand, glanced around and despite her best effort, couldn't utter a single word. As Marinette was left gaping, Lila took the opportunity to be rude to her.

"I'm happy that you and Damian are happy together but as Damian's favorite cousin... I just want you to know that if you hurt him, I'll never let you forget it," threatened Lila.

"I don't know where you got this idea but Damian and I are not dating. We're just friends," she said which made her classmates wince.

" Oh really?" Lila challenged. "Then why do you and Damian spend so much time together? Even you don't spend that much time with your other friends."

"Damian's staying with us until his parents can agree on a new guardian for Damian. I'm sure you've heard all about it since you and Damian are so close," said Marinette.

"But you and Damian have all these cute pet names for each other and Damian's never let anyone hug him and he doesn't hug anyone back," Lila insisted, glancing around hoping someone would jump in to support her but no one did.

"If Marinette and Damian were dating, we'd know by now. After all, Damian isn't good at lying and Marinette doesn't like liars," said Nino.

Before Lila could say another word, the school's alarm went off and the students were scrambling to leave the cafeteria and to the designated Akuma Evac locations, except Marinette and Adrien. The pair scurried to find a place to transform away from the others. They agreed to go down to the lockers and transform down there.  
\--  
Once Ladybug and Cat Noir were finished with their fight with the Akuma, the pair rushed back to school. Adrien, who hadn't used his Cataclysm, went straight to school. Marinette, on the other hand, made a quick pit stop at her house to grab some cookies for Tikki before returning to school.

When she got to her school, she noticed that very few people were hanging around. From what she could see, they were mostly standing off to the sides as they waited to find out whether the school day would be cut short. Not wanting to waste time, she went to get her stuff from her locker and pushed the door just enough to hear Lila's voice speaking to someone else in the room.

"You know she likes you right? You know... as more than friends," said Lila, as Marinette was frozen at her position at the door.

"Who exactly are we talking about? I could care less about someone else's feelings," said Damian.

Marinette pushed the door a little further. Through the gap in the door, she could see Damian rummaging through his locker while Lila was facing him. The pair had their backs to the door so they couldn't see her. Marinette took this opportunity to look around to make sure no one was watching her before she turned back to the cousins.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm talking about Marinette Dupain-Cheng, your clingy stalker," said Lila.

Marinette clenched the edge of the door as she stared at Lila. She doesn't know why she's so surprised at how low Lila will stoop to hurt her. Anytime something good happens in her life, Lila would find a way to turn it back on her to cause her pain. Marinette was just glad that she knew that Damian was smart enough not to fall for such things.

"Marinette isn't my stalker. She's my friend," he said, as he stopped what he was doing to glare at her.

"You and I both know that you don't know what a real friend is after the childhood that we've had. After all, you spent an entire day holding hands with a girl, who essentially held you as a hostage, as she tried to convince you that it was magic that was keeping you stuck together," Lila said.

"Don't you dare bring Maps into this!" he shouted as he slammed the locker closed, which surprised Marinette.

"I thought her name was Mia."

"It is. She prefers to be called Maps, as she is obsessed with them. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Nothing at all. I just thought it was strange that you're much closer to this 'Maps' girl than Marinette that you would go so far as to call her by a nickname. I mean, Marinette has all these cute names for you but I've never heard you call her such a name. If anything, Marinette is the only 'friend' of yours that doesn't have a nickname."

Marinette felt a pang in her chest after Lila said that. She knew that this was just a ruse to sway Damian to her side but... she couldn't deny that it didn't affect her. Her white-knuckled hands were now freezing. A second ago, she was burning in anger that Lila would try to sway Damian but now she was colder than she's ever felt before.

"What exactly are you implying?"

"That you're just humoring Marinette because your dad wanted you to make friends so badly. I can see that it's gotten out of hand and you don't know how to get out of this relationship you have with Marinette."

Lila crossed her arms and shifted her weight to her left leg to make herself look confident in her words. She feigned interest in her nails as she realized that they have an audience in one Marinette Dupain-Cheng. From what Lila could see, Damian was so riled up that he hadn't realized that she was spying on them.

"Marinette and I are not in a relationship. She's just a friend."

"That's not what Marinette's been saying when you're not around. I'm sorry if this is embarrassing but I thought that you needed to know. She's been telling everyone how in love the two of you are. Marinette has a lot of pictures of you on her phone and in her room and learned your entire schedule so she knows what you're doing 24/7."

"Marinette is a fashion designer and I model for her often. She's also class president so she needs to know everyone's schedule so everyone has a chance to attend class events without feeling excluded."

Marinette felt the warmth return to her body as Damian defended her. It had scared her that he had just let Lila talk without shutting her down. Now she was more certain of how he felt about her.

Lila noticed the confidence in how Damian was addressing her with the smug look on his face and his hands tucked into his pockets. His anger towards her accusation was fading away and she knew it was only a matter of time before he noticed Marinette eavesdropping. Thinking quickly, she brought up a subject that Lila knew was a sure-fire way to make Damian see red.

"Oh, I get it now. This is about you rebelling against your mother, isn't it?" probed Lila.

Lila watched as the smug look on Damian's face turned into one of rage. He pulled out of his hands out of his pockets to clench them by his side. She knew that she hit the right nerve because Damian was breathing heavily, which she assumed was an effort to calm himself down.

"Don't you dare speak of my mother, Rossi!" Damian spat.

"But it's true. After she dumped you at your father's, you wanted to make her boil with rage. Aunt Talia would never approve of a klutzy, scattered brained girl like her. The complete opposite of the girl that your mother wanted you to court. What was her name again?" asked Lila, pretending that she was trying to recall a name.

"I could care less about what my mother thinks about the company I keep. She has no sway over me."

"Oh, I remember now! It was Kagami Tsurugi."

As soon as Lila mentioned Kagami, Marinette felt her grip loosen from the door and dropped to her side. The warmth was now gone and all she felt was the cold. Tears started to pool in her eyes. Before she knew it, Marinette's whole body felt numb to the touch. She couldn't feel Tikki pat her side or hear her asking if she was okay.

"I," Damian said, as he took a deep breath. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"We both know that you were head over heels for Kagami when we were kids but she broke your heart. You wanted to pretend that it didn't bother you so you decided to find another girl that looked similar to her but you wanted her to be nothing like her so she would be fawning over you instead of rejecting you. Admit it, Damian! In the end, you're no different than me. We see someone weak and useless and turn them into our pawns to be played the way we want them to be."

Marinette's eyes blurred as she stared at the boy in the locker room. She wondered why it took her so long to realize it. It explained all of Damian's weird behavior when they first met. How one minute he would be cold and distant, then the next he was warm and friendly.

Marinette thought of the few lies that he had tried to tell them all in the beginning. They were so bad that not even the most naive of a person would believe it. When Marinette called him out on it, he agreed not to lie to her if she would understand that there are things that he couldn't tell her. Was that just an elaborate ploy to convince her that he was someone to be trusted?

In the beginning, Damian was hiding the fact that he and Lila were related. From the very beginning, he was lying. That's what they did best. If something didn't go the way they wanted it, they'd lie to make it all better to suit their needs.

Marinette's brain jumped to more and more conclusions despite her best effort to remind herself that Lila was a liar that will lie to get whatever she wanted. She was too upset to piece together what was the truth and what was lies. Eventually, Marinette was snapped out of it when she heard Adrien's voice call out to her which forced her to jump forward to fling the door open.

Marinette looked up to see Damian and Lila looking over at her. Damian was staring at her with wide eyes and a gaping mouth, which under different circumstances would have made her laugh. Lila, on the other hand, looked very smug about the whole thing. Later on, when she wasn't upset, Marinette will look back at this and realize that the two were set up but for now, she takes one last look at Damian before running out the way she came.

"Marinette, come back!" shouted Damian, as she bolted away.  
\--  
Marinette spent the next hour, sobbing in her room. She had gone up to her home from the other side so her parents wouldn't see her crying. Marinette thanked the Kwamis that Hawkmoth didn't seem to be interested in akumatizing her at the moment.

After making her way to her computer from her bed, she was surprised to see that Adrien had bombarded her with lots of calls, texts, and even left some voicemail. From what little that she read and heard, he was worried about her after she ran away from school crying. Especially, when it looked like she was running from Damian, of all people. She simply sent him a text that she'd tell him later once she was sure of what happened herself.

Marinette wanted to understand it but every time she thought about Lila saying that Damian was no different than her, she shut down. Marinette couldn't, or wouldn't, believe that Damian was that kind of person. She just didn't know what to believe anymore.

"Marinette, please tell me you're okay," begged Tikki.

"But I'm not okay, Tikki!" shouted Marinette as she turned to her.

"Tell me what's wrong and I'll help you figure it out."

Marinette held her hands up and the kwami flew into it. She walked over to her trapdoor as if she wanted to go down but had decided to sit down beside it. Marinette opened it to see if anyone was downstairs and with the coast was clear, she spoke up.

"I know Lila is a liar. That's the only thing I'm certain about right now. Damian is my friend but he's also related to Lila. I want to believe that Damian cares about me but... how do I know that he's not using me because of Kagami?" asked Marinette.

"Why does it bother you so much that Damian used to like Kagami?" asked Tikki.

Marinette froze. Why did it bother her that Damian had feelings for someone else? Especially someone who had rejected him. Was it because it reminded her of how she lost her chance with Adrien? Or was it because Kagami was a much better choice than she was?

"Lila said that Damian's mother would never approve of me. From what little Damian's told me, that he and his family were raised like warriors. Kagami is badass and an amazing fighter. I'm just an ordinary girl with an ordinary life," Marinette mumbled.

"Marinette, you're more than just ordinary. You're Ladybug! If you think that Damian's not being sincere, then why don't you call up Damian's family. They did tell you to talk to them if you ever needed anything," said Tikki, as she motioned towards the computer.

"No, Tikki, I can't do that! They're in a different time zone. It's probably night time there."

Tikki wasn't listening though. She was using the computer and saw that Damian's family had called her earlier asking if she was okay. Tikki took it upon herself to call Dick because Damian seemed the closest to him and he was online. Before Marinette could stop it, someone had picked up and Tikki flew behind the screen even though no one would see her.

"You're Marinette," said the girl on the other end.

"Hi, I'm sorry for bothering you. I was looking for Damian's brother, Dick," said Marinette, as she slowly inched her way to turn stop the call.

"I'm Cass. Dick's and Damian's sister. Damian's been worried about you," said Cass, watching the girl closely.

Marinette stopped inching towards the mouse to end the call. Cass smirked as she made her way somewhere private so she and Marinette could talk without being interrupted. The younger of the two girls wanted to forget the whole thing happened. But Marinette craved answers to her questions and Cass seemed to be the type who would give her a straight answer.

"We're alone now. Any questions?"

"What did you mean when you said Damian was worried about me?"

"Damian told us that he was having a fight with his cousin who kept insisting that Damian was just using you. Damian would have brushed it off if it weren't for the fact that Lila was insisting that he should be embarrassed that you were in love with him," said Cass, which made Marinette take in a shaky breath.

"But I'm not... Damian and I are just friends. Besides he's probably still in love with Kagami. Damian spends a lot of time staring at her from a distance," whispered Marinette.

Marinette's eyes started to blur with unshed tears. She thought back to all the times that she had seen Damian staring at Kagami. How he would look away when Kagami caught him staring at him. Damian never hesitated or ever looked unsure of himself in the time that she'd known him... except when it came to Kagami.

"But he's not. Lila and Damian's mother are excellent manipulators. Talia convinced Damian to pursue Kagami when they were younger. When she rejected him, Talia blinded her mother and killed certain members of her family. Damian couldn't look Kagami in the eyes after that. He was ashamed of the pain that he'd caused to her family.

"That's why we're so thankful that you and your family are in Damian's life. Damian grew up in a world where you had to fight for your worth and love was just another tool to use against someone. You love without asking for anything in return and you made Damian feel at home when even we couldn't. Thank you."

Marinette started to cry again but not for herself. She cried for Kagami, for Damian, and for everyone else whose lives were ruined by people like Lila and Damian's mother. When she finished crying, Marinette continued to talk to Cass.  
\--  
After talking for a half-hour, they decided that it was time they hung up and got back to the real world but the two girls agreed to talk more in the future. All the negative feelings that came from Lila's toxic words were gone. Once Tikki came out of her hiding spot, she gently hugged her and thanked her for her help.

Just as Marinette was getting up from her computer, she heard her mother calling for her. Marinette met her halfway down her trapdoor stairs. She saw how worried but relieved to see her.

"Maman, what's wrong?" asked Marinette, as her mother embraced her.

"Are you okay? Did something happen between you and Damian? Is there anything you need to talk about?" she asked.

"Damian's cousin was hurting him by saying awful things about my friendship with Damian. I knew they were lies but the 'what ifs' really hurt to think about so when they noticed I was watching... I ran without saying anything. Once I calmed down, I called one of Damian's siblings and they told me not to believe his cousin," Marinette said.

"Oh, that's good. I'm glad that one of you is feeling better," said Sabine, as she led them down the stairs to the kitchen.

"What do you mean?" asked Marinette.

Marinette sat down across her mother in the kitchen. Sabine put a warm cup of tea into her hand. Marinette tried to get her mother to tell her but she refused to say a word before Marinette drank her tea. So sipped on her tea as quickly as she could to appease her mother.

"Damian came in after school let out early today and apologized to us for hurting you. After he explained to us, Damian said that he was here to pick up his stuff and leave since he didn't want to burden us anymore," she said.

"Where's Damian now? And what about Papa?" Marinette asked.

"Damian is in his room gathering his stuff and Tom is standing in the doorway to keep him here long enough to convince him to stay," said Sabine with a shake of her head.

Once Marinette was done with the cup, she jumped out of her chair and made her way to Damian's room. She could feel her mother right on her heels but she couldn't concentrate on that now. She won't let Damian leave without saying something to her.

When they got there, Marinette could hear her father's exasperated voice from the door as he tried to convince Damian to stay. She could faintly hear Damian argue with him, saying that this was best for everyone. Marinette gently patted her father's shoulder so she wouldn't startle him and he let her slip past him into the room.

"What are you doing, Damian?" asked Marinette.

When Damian heard her speak, he froze in his tracks. He looked over to her before getting back to putting stuff in his suitcases. Damian refused to look at her as he walked around the room gathering his stuff. Marinette took this opportunity to look around and noticed that he didn't touch the stuff that they had given to him.

"I have overstayed my welcome. It's best for everyone if I take my leave, Dupain-Cheng," said Damian.

"So you were hoping to leave without saying goodbye to all your hosts, were you? That's very rude, Wayne," said Marinette.

"There's nothing you can say to convince me to stay. I'm sorry that your parents asked you to come to speak with me," he said.

"I wanted to talk to you. Where are you going to stay?"

"Le Grand Paris for the time being so you don't have to feel bad."

"If you're going to go, then you better take all of your stuff with you."

Damian stopped what he was doing to look over at her. She grabbed the scarf that she made for him and walked towards him. Damian went stiff as Marinette wrapped the scarf around his neck. She leaned forward to peck his cheek and hug him. He leaned forward to hug her back.

"Why are you doing this?" asked Damian.

"Because you're my friend and I care about you. If you're not comfortable staying here, I'm not going to stop you. But if you think for a second that it's better to run away from your problems, then you're dead wrong," she said as she squeezed him tighter.

"I hurt you and you still want to be friends?"

"We both know who hurt us and that's Lila. The only way to get rid of me is if you said that you don't want to be friends to my face.

Damian slowly pulled her away from him and looked her in the eyes. Both of them were trying to fight back the tears welling up. Marinette felt herself grow cold thinking that he might say it. Damian was also mustering up the courage to say something to her as he steadied his breath and grabbed her shoulders.

"I... I still want to be friends."

Marinette watched as Damian couldn't hold back the tears anymore. She pulled him into her arms and held him tightly. The pair felt Sabine's arms wrap around them. Tom followed shortly after that. They stayed like that for a couple of minutes before pulling apart.

"So are you still leaving or do you want to stay with us?" asked Sabine.

"I'd like to stay here if you'll have me," said Damian, as he looked up at Marinette's parents with uncertainty.

"We'd love for you to stay here with us, Damian! Now you kids should unpack Damian's stuff and we'll go make your favorite snacks," said Tom.

"You don't have to," muttered Damian.

"That's nonsense, Damian! This is your home, too, and you deserve to feel loved here," said Sabine softly, as she held Damian's face in her hands.

With that said, the pair left the room with the two teenagers. Once the two were sure that they were gone, Tikki and Sass flew into the open to hug the pair. Damian pulled his stuff out of his suitcases while Tikki pulled open all the empty drawers and Marinette started putting his stuff away with Sass' direction. In no time the quartet had put his room back together with the last item being the Miracle Box which they tucked away.

"Should we tell them about what happened today?" asked Damian.

"Maybe tomorrow, right now I just want to spend time with my friend," said Marinette.

The two of them laid down beside each other on Damian's bed. They talked for a long time. Sabine and Tom had made good on their promise and brought them snacks. Marinette took the opportunity to run upstairs to grab her school work which Damian had no problem helping her with it. Then they had fallen asleep snuggled up to each other for an hour and a half.

Not long after that, they were called to dinner. Damian was oddly pleased that they all wanted to assure him that he'll always have a place with them. Eventually, Marinette decided that she needed to go back up to her room, leaving Damian with her parents.

"Now that we're alone, there's something been meaning to ask you but we weren't sure how to broach the subject," said Sabine.

"I'll do my best to answer," said Damian.

"Are you and Marinette honestly just friends or is there something else going on?" asked Tom.

Damian stared at them with wide eyes. Marinette and Adrien had told him about how Marinette's father was akumatized but they weren't acting like that now. Tom, who was excitable about having a son-in-law, was being remarkably patient. Sabine was giving him a soft smile and giving him the time he needed to answer.

"Marinette isn't mine in any romantic capacity but I think I'd be lying if I said that I didn't have those feelings for her. I don't know what she is past being my friend but I can assure you that she's the sweetest thing in my life. I hope to find out what she is to me in the future... if you'll let me, of course," said Damian.

"You have our blessing. If you ever need any advice, then you know who to go to. Now go to sleep. Tomorrow's a school day after all," said Sabine.

With that said, Damian made his way to his room. He laid there on his bed thinking about what he had told Marinette's parents and how they had given him their blessing. As much as he wanted to go to her and tell her how he felt, Damian knew that he still needed time to mature before he could consider telling her.

"She's just a friend," said Damian as he closed his eyes to sleep.


	2. Day 2: Blind Date

When Dick first got up to the Watch Tower, he asked around for Zatanna. After spending hours thinking about his plan, he knew that the only way that it would work is if he had her help in it. Eventually, someone told him where she was and he ran to her as fast as he could.

"Hey Zatanna, do you have a moment?" asked Nightwing, as he pulled his friend to the side.

"Um, sure. Do you need another magical item or something?" she asked.

"I need your help to set Damian on a date with someone," said Nightwing.

"You do know that Marinette has a crush on Damian, right?" Zatanna put her hands up and looked up at him annoyed.

"She is? That's perfect! But what I meant was that I wanted to put them on a blind date."

Zatanna's face fell when he said that. She put her face in her hands and sighed heavily. Nightwing stood there pretending that it didn't bother him that she didn't believe in his plan and waited for her to respond.

"Why does everything need to complicated with you, Dick?" she asked before turning away from him.

Nightwing was hot on her heels as he continued to explain. "Damian and Marinette are stubborn. They're not going to admit to one another unless they know that it won't ruin their friendship. Can you please just hear me out?"

Zatanna stopped and turned towards him. She crossed her arms in front of her and tilted her head. With a simple nod, he started to explain his plan.

"There's a charity gala in Paris that my family is attending in two months. It also happens to be the same event that Marinette's family is catering," Dick started.

"The one with the masquerade ball theme? Isn't that the one that your family commissioned her to make costumes for?" she asked.

"That's the one! Those two have been stressed lately and having them go out for a change might do them good," said Nightwing.

Zatanna sighed again and adjusted her stance. "I have my doubts but I want those two kids to be happy so... why not? The worst that can happen is Marinette and Damian will be annoyed with us for setting them up. What do you need me to do?"

With that said, Nightwing told her his plan. Zatanna interrupted every once in a while to put her two cents in when he tried to make it more complicated. Eventually, with much debating, they agreed on a plan. The pair shook hands before going off to put the plan in motion.  
\--  
"Grayson, please remind me why I agreed to let you talk me into this," hissed Damian.

"When's the last time you've had time to go out and have fun? Can't remember, can you?" asked Dick. 

Dick was in the middle of putting his finishing touches on Damian's hair. Once he was done, Dick carefully put Damian's mask on to not disturb his hard work. After that was done, Damian walked away from him and looked himself in the mirror and realized that something was off.

"This isn't the outfit Marinette made for me," he said.

Dick froze. He had been hoping that Damian hadn't noticed but he guessed that was just wishful thinking. Dick turned around to see the angry teen cross his arms and glared at him using the reflection.

"Zatanna is trying to get Suren to be more social. She figured that you and Maya could help with that. We gave your outfit to him and got Maya one from a friend very last minute," Dick explained.

Damian turned away from the mirror and made his way towards the door. He made sure to push Dick as he walked out. Dick just rolled his eyes as he followed the boy to where the rest of their family, including Maya and Suren, was waiting for them.

"How am I supposed to help Suren if you're forcing me to take a stranger as my date?" asked Damian.

"If things with your date don't go well, then Maya and Suren can jump in to save your date from your terrible personality," said Tim, as he was typing away on his phone.

"Bold of you to say when you put all your dates to sleep, Drake," Damian shot back.

"Both of you, stop that! Can we please have a night where we can pass ourselves off as normal?" asked Bruce.

Damian said nothing as he reached them. Maya and Suren approached him and hugged him. They spoke in hushed voices before the two guests turned to Bruce.

"We would like to thank you for inviting us. We understand that we are intruding on a family event and we'll do our best not to embarrass you," said Maya.

"You are Damian's family just as much as we are. We're happy to have you. Now we need to get going. We don't want to keep Damian's date waiting," said Bruce.

Those closest to the door were making jokes at Damian's expense. Maya and Suren kept their hands gripped around his arms so he wouldn't run off to attack his siblings. They kept him walking slowly so they could speak to him in private.

"What's bothering you?" asked Suren, as they kept pace to see Damian's family but not close enough to be in earshot.

"Grayson is making me take a date to an event that Marinette and her parents will be attending," said Damian.

"Does it upset you that he didn't ask you or are you upset that Marinette might see you on a date with a stranger?" asked Maya.

Damian looked up at her with furrowed brows. They stopped him in his tracks when they were outside waiting for his family to get into the stretch limo before them. He was still lost in thought as they got closer.

"I don't pretend to understand what's going on but I know that Dick planned this so you can go and have fun. Since the two of you will be wearing masks, you won't have to see her again unless you want to," said Suren.

"Besides, this will be good practice. How are you going to learn about starting a relationship if you can't get through a first date?" asked Maya.

It was their turn to get in. They carefully maneuvered themselves in without jostling anyone already inside. Once they were inside, the limo took off to the venue.

The large group seemed to get louder and louder the longer they were in the limo. Damian watched in appreciation for this calm before the storm. He didn't know what to expect and that frightened him but his family and friends had spent a lot of time encouraging him and he wasn't going to let them down.  
\--  
"Maman, I'm nervous. What if my date doesn't show up? What if he does show up and he doesn't like me? What if I trip on my costume and hurt him? What if-" asked Marinette, before her mother pulled her towards her in a hug.

"It's going to be alright, sweetie. I'm sure he'll like you. If not, I'm sure Damian will be more than happy to defend your honor," teased Sabine.

"Maman, don't encourage him! Speaking of Damian, do you know when his family is getting here? I want to see how they all look in the costumes I made them," said Marinette, as she tried not to pull on the edges of her dress.

"If I'm not mistaken, then that should be them at the door. They all look amazing! You did such a wonderful job. Now go stand at the end of the table. We don't want you missing your date," said Tom, as he shooed her away with a plate of two chocolate croissants.

Marinette took a deep breath and did as she was told. As much as she wanted to pick at the croissants, she just held the plate in front of her to make herself easier to spot to her date. She silently cursed her cousin, Zatanna, for not telling her a thing about her date. At least she knew that he was wearing one of the costumes that she made for the event. Marinette wished that she could be wearing the costume that she had made for herself but there was a last-minute change and she was wearing a costume that she made for a girl about the same size as her.

"Excuse me, you wouldn't happen to be waiting for a blind date, would you?" asked a male voice that was just beside her.

Marinette jumped a little and nearly dropped the plate she was holding. Luckily, there were hands on the other side of the plate that lifted it before the croissants could slide off. She looked up to see a boy wearing the last costume she made before she started her own. For a second, they just stood there staring at each other. Both of them unsure whether to speak up or not.

"I'm glad that you showed up. I was worried that I was having a joke played on me," he said.

"Me too. I mean, I was worried that I was going to make a fool of myself and ruin your night," said Marinette.

"My family took bets on how long it would take for you to get fed up with me and leave," he said, as he looked down at the snacks. "These snacks are too nice to let them got to waste."

"There's a table nearby if you want to share these with me," she said.

The masked boy merely nodded and she turned to lead them to the empty table. Once they were seated with the plate between them, they both reached out and ended up touching hands. They looked up at each other and blushed before pulling away.

"Um, you can pick first," said the boy.

She grabbed the one closest to her and he followed by grabbing the other. While the pair were eating, they were trying to be discreet about taking in the other's appearance. When they weren't taking each other in, they were looking for the people that they had shown up with but it seemed that they have blended into the crowd. Once they were done with their treats, they turned back to face each other.

"So... what should I call you? I mean, I know that we can't share our names until the end but it'd be weird if I didn't call you anything," she said.

"Um, what do you want to be called?" he asked.

"I kinda like 'Lady'," Marinette said.

"Okay, then call me Guardian," he said.

Marinette looked up at the stranger in front of her. She watched as he froze when she turned to look at him more directly. Before she could stop herself, Marinette was laughing. She cupped her hands over her mouth and the boy just stared at her in confusion.

"Is that the best you can come up with?" she asked, as she calmed down.

"Are saying Lady is any better?" he asked.

At first, Marinette thought that she had offended him. She looked up at him to apologize and saw that he was trying to keep a straight face. Once she knew that he was messing with her, Marinette playfully pushed his arm.

"Well, Guardian, do you think you can protect me while we go and dance for a while?" she asked.

"It would be my pleasure, my fair Lady," said the boy.

He got up before Marinette and held his hand out to her. She gladly accepted and he led them onto the dance floor. At first, Marinette was panicking that she was going to trip over him and ruin their night. If she had stepped on his feet, then he never said a word. They glided across the dance floor for what felt like an hour.

Marinette was having the time of her life until she saw the costume that she made for Damian and the costume that she had made for herself. The pair wearing them were dancing not too far away from them. They seemed to be having the time of their lives, and it hurt to see them like that. She no longer wanted to be there.

Guardian must have felt her change of demeanor because he looked down at her and the direction that she had been looking. Marinette heard him whisper something in his ear but for the life of her, she couldn't hear it. All she knew was that he was leading them towards the edge of the dancefloor. Once she got there, Marinette pulled away from him and towards the nearest exit, which led to a balcony. Once she got there, she untied the mask from her face.

Marinette felt guilty about leaving Guardian there. They were having such a good time and she just pushed him away without saying a word. If she saw him again, she would make sure to apologize but right now, she just wanted to be alone with her thoughts since they didn't make the most sense to her.

"Why did it hurt to see him with someone else, Tikki?" Marinette asked.  
\--  
Damian couldn't believe that he just ruined his date and didn't know how or why. One minute, he and Lady were dancing around, laughing to their heart's content. Next minute, she's unresponsive and rushing to get away from him. When he followed her line of sight, she was staring at Suren and Maya butchering the dance that he had spent so long teaching them. He couldn't figure out why it bothered her so much.

Damian was so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed that someone was heading straight for him. He was snapped out of it when he felt someone tug his shoulder to turn him around. Damian looked up to see Dick looking very upset with him.

"Damian, what the hell did you say or do to Marinette?" asked Dick.

"I don't know. One minute, we were having fun but then she saw Suren and Maya..." Damian said before trailing off.

Marinette. He said her name. He'd been spending the night with Marinette and she was upset with him. She was upset that the boy she thought was him was dancing with another girl.

"I don't need you shutting down on me, baby bird. What happened?" asked Dick.

"You set me on a blind date with Marinette," was all Damian could say.

Before Dick could respond, Damian pulled away from him. He made his way to the exit that Marinette had taken. It was still slightly open and he could see that it was her because he could hear Tikki's voice trying to reassure her. Damian took a deep breath before pushing the door open.  
\--  
"You really should be careful about you're surroundings, my fair Lady. We wouldn't want anyone to find out about your alter ego," said a voice behind Marinette.

In a heartbeat, Marinette pulled Tikki out of sight and behind her mask. She turned around to see Guardian standing behind her. He closed the doors behind him but moved off to the side, to give her space and a means of escape. She pulled her hands behind her back and tried to act as nonchalant as possible.

"Oh hey, Guardian, you scared me there! What are you doing out here?" Marinette asked.

"You've been crying," he said, which made Marinette wipe her tears. "I came to apologize for making you cry again, Marinette."

"You didn't make me cry, Guardian. I was just-" she said before stopping herself.

He said her name. Whoever Guardian was, he knew her real name and had seen Tikki. Marinette was on the verge of panic when she remembered what he said.

"Again?" she asked, as she started to connect the dots.

Marinette watched in morbid fascination as Guardian pulled off his mask. She was looking up at Damian, of all people. Marinette had been spending the night with Damian.

"I'm starting to think I'm doomed to do nothing but hurt you," said Damian, as he bowed his head in shame.

"You could never hurt me, Damian," said Marinette.

With that said, Marinette rushed over to him and hugged him. She was relieved when Damian hugged her just as tightly. Once she was in Damian's arms, Marinette realized how cold she was by standing out there. When they pulled away, Damian pulled off his coat and wrapped it around her and for once, she didn't argue about him doing so.

"The two that you saw wearing our costumes are my closest friends, Suren and Maya. They're like family to me," said Damian.

"Oh," was all Marinette could manage.

"You know, I spent the entire night thinking about you. About how it would feel like to hold you in my arms..."

Damian walked forward and held out his hand out to her again. Marinette grabbed his hand and pressed his palm into her cheek. They leaned forward and pressed their forwards together.

Behind them, they heard the door open and a few people fell forward. Damian and Marinette looked over to see several of Damian's siblings lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Those that weren't on the ground were helping them up. Bruce walked out to watch over them just in case Damian lost his temper.

"Is there something we can help you with?" asked Damian, as he resisted the urge to strangle them.

"I think they learned their lesson for eavesdropping for now. How about we all call it a night and go home? We can drop you home if you want Marinette," said Bruce.

"I'll ask my parents but I think they'll be okay with that," said Marinette.  
\--  
Marinette and Damian hadn't let go of the other's hand since they made their way inside. After talking to her parents, they agreed to let them go home early. They even suggested inviting Suren and Maya to stay the night. With that said, the group made their way to their ride.

Damian noticed that they were just as loud as they were when they first got in the limo. The only difference is that he was holding hands with Marinette, who was leaning on his shoulder. It was the only difference that he cared about at the moment.

Once they got to Marinette's, the limo only stayed long enough to make sure all the kids were in with the door closed behind them. Marinette gave Suren and Maya the tour of her home. When they got to Damian's room, they helped him grab all the blankets and pillows there before making their way to the living room.

"I'm taking Maya upstairs so we can get changed into some pajamas. Can you do the same with Suren?" asked Marinette, as she turned to Damian.

"No problem," said Damian, as he led Suren back to his room.

Once they were all changed, they went back to the living room where Marinette taught them how to make a fort. They spent the night playing board games, watching movies, and talking the night away. When Marinette's parents came home, they found the four teens sleeping in a pile on the floor with Marinette snuggled into Damian's side.

"Looks like their blind date worked out after all," whispered Tom.

"Shh! Don't wake them," whispered Sabine, as she turned off the light and pulled them back to their room.


End file.
